Hi ChasA,
No incorrect assumptions from here. I am fully aware of air's insulating properties as well as Aluminum's ability to conduct heat. (We all know that heat' flows, not cold, right?) The point of this topic is to try to discover an economical way to improve the insulation on our coaches. Since redesign of the roof attachment is beyond the reach of all the existing coaches, but may be something that Winnebago would like to look into in light of the current energy situation, the only option open to us is insulating where we can. A 5% or 10% reduction in heat loose or absorption in just this area could repay a $100.00 investment in no time at all.
Perhaps Winnebago or some of our retired HVAC engineers could give us a rough figure based on the design drawings. As they say, "Every little bit helps".
Tim,
Absolutely. Anything to keep the air from moving and block radiant heat transfer across the spaces. Closed cell is better than Open cell. Open cell is better than batt. Batt is better than nothing at all. I'd say, all in all, that our coach is pretty air tight when the windows and door are closed. The reason the wall to ceiling joint is of a major concern is not that there are any air leaks, but that the area for the entire length of the coach down both sides gets cold enough to condense moisture out of even our dry New Mexico air on the coldest nights. (15º to 20ºF). That alone is a good indicator of how poorly this area is insulated. I'm sure that if the outside temps were below 0ºF that ice would form in the corners. Given the thermal conductivity of the extruded Aluminum, I would still expect this area to be colder than the center of the ceiling but give us a break, there's got to be a better way.
Hey Jerry,
Sprayed on foam? I can well imagine it's not good looking. But if you can't see it with the covers closed, maybe it's worth investigation. The only other area I am aware of that is poorly (in relative terms) insulated is the floor area in the front around the driver and passenger and up under the dash. There are areas that have only sheet metal between the occupants and the big wide world. At one time I tried putting 3" wide sticky backed " foam over some of these areas but they tend to fall off of glossy paint after a just few months. I'm think now I may try spray on foam, it should stick quite nicely if I clean the painted surfaces and should provide a well needed barrier to heat and cold in this area. Thanks for the suggestion.
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